Something To Fight For
by sweetashby
Summary: Picks up from next weeks episode "Not Like This" based on promo- but has thoughts from the previous two. With Casey's life hanging in the balance will he find something to fight for? First time posting, please read and review! :D Dawsey
1. Chapter 1

**Though I write often, I don't normally post my stories on here. I simply read other's work. Reason being is that I never have the time. Between college, work, and the **_**two**_** organizations I volunteer for, I never have any free time, to keep my stories updated and I would hate to leave a committed reader hanging. But I have taking the fall semester off of college and I have decided that because my sister and I are so in love with Dawsey; (so much so, we watched "Rhymes with Shout" every night, and counted the remaining 10 hours until last night's episode aired) that I am going to dedicate free time to working on my Dawsey story. The start of this chapter is an idea I came up with based on the promo and summary for next week. I hope you enjoy and please comment. I appreciate any thoughts including constructive criticism! This chapter is short- but I promise they will all be much longer after this; it is simply a prologue to see how you all respond. If it receives good feedback I would hopefully post once a night. **

**Disclaimer; I own no part of, NBC, Chicago Fire, the characters, or any of the storylines we have seen on the show. **

This couldn't be happening; there was absolutely no way any God could be this cruel. She had spent years- _years_, wishing Matt were hers. But nothing ever seemed to go their way; he'd been on and off with Hallie the last few years, and when they had spilt due to different dreams and plans for their future, Gabby had been with Mills. When Mills ended things, she learned Matt had giving up his dreams of being a father in exchange for Hallie. Then Hallie had been ruthlessly murdered, and all she could do was be there as a friend for Matt, supporting him, helping him in this difficult time. When the accident with Heather took place and he gained custody of the Darden boys they had grown close again.

When Heather was let out on good behavior, and offered the job in Florida she knew Matt was acting more okay than he actually was. He was losing two young boys he cared deeply about; and in a way it was as though his dreams of fatherhood were being ripped away again. So once again Gabby was there for him; it wasn't until the night after the boys had left that he broke down in her arms. They'd been packing the remainder of the boy's clothes up and he had come across the action figure Ben had giving him. Gabby turned around to see him sitting on the bed, his head down and his shoulders violently shaking. Without giving it a second thought Gabby took the five steps to him, putting her arms around him and cradling his head while he cried into her neck. It wasn't no more than ten minutes later when he had calmed down, bringing his head back up to look her in the eye before whispering a quiet "thank you".

The following morning when he had attempted to tell her how much she had saved him these last few months she shot him down; her mind automatically going back to her family party, where she had made a fool out of herself, trying to make a move. Then after receiving a call for a three car accident, the van they were inside caught fire; he had yelled her name, throwing his body over hers to shield her from the flames. After they had both made it safely out he looked her up and down with fear in his eyes at the thought that she may have been hurt. She recognized that look, it was the same look of fear she had giving him when the ladder used as a bridge between two buildings had slipped from one of the window frames leaving him dangling for his life. It was that look that had made her decision to talk to him about where they stood a definite. One way or another she needed to know. He had once again opened up to her, telling her he didn't know where he'd be if it weren't for her; admitting to her that he had felt she saved his life numerous times in the last few months. They both stayed silent, Gabby trying to build up enough courage to draw the blinds and kiss him; when she finally had, Cheout killed the moment, leaving both Matt and Gabby staring at one another dumbfounded.

That night she'd gone over Matt's words a hundred times in her head; eventually with a lot of consideration and a glass and a half of wine, she had changed into a pretty black dress, with heels, let her hair down and applied the perfect shade of red lipstick. Grabbing her keys and coat before she had time to change her mind, but he had beat her to the punch; when she opened the door there he stood, wide eyed like a deer caught in headlights. Before both of them had too much time to overthink, he placed his hands around her waist and planted his lips onto hers in their very first kiss. When she wrapped her arms around him, her hands at the nape of his neck he took it as a good sign and gently pushed her into her apartment. They hadn't even parted their lips before his jacket was off, his lips moving from hers to suckle the skin just below her jaw bone. She through her head back both in pleasure and to give him better access. They both knew they should stop what was about to happen, they had a lot to discuss about what this would mean but they had both waited so long for this moment that neither one was willing to possibly ruin it with a less than fun conversation. So after a long night of lovemaking they had woken up in one another's arms, she could feel his soft lips leave a gentle wet kiss on her shoulder blade. Because both had avoided the conversation the night before she was fearful he would leave, but when she told him it would be okay if he had somewhere to be, he'd opened up yet again and told her how much he had regretted blowing it the first time. Maybe it was his morning voice, or the feeling of being held tightly in his arms, maybe it was the unfamiliar comfort of him being so open and honest but she chose to believe him.

He had shown her he was serious about her, that he truly cared- spending the entire night driving around with her in search of Shay; and when she was all but ready to give up he had reassured her that she would find her, he would help and that nobody knew Shay better than her. After finding her and safely bringing her home, they had sat in a comfortable silence, both exhausted from the search; and both grateful it was their day off, and they could grab some much needed sleep. Neither wanting to assume the other would automatically be going to the others place just because they were not an item. Breaking the silence Matt spoke first;

"Um, I don't know about you but I'm in need of a few hours of shut eye-did you want to come back to my place, or did you want to go to yours?"

"Oh, uh- what- what do you want to do?"

"Honestly? I just want to fall asleep with you in my arms, where it is doesn't matter to me."

"My place is closer."

"You aren't sick of me yet? You don't mind me staying?"

Gabby turned Matt's chin toward her before gently placing her lips on his.

"I will never be sick of you- drive."

How was it even possible that was under forty-eight hours ago and here she was sitting in a hospital waiting room praying to whatever God would listen that he wasn't taken from her. It wasn't fair dammit. She stood up from the spot on the wall she had been leaning against for the last three hours, when she saw the doctor approach them.

"Matthew Casey's family?"

"How is he?"

"You're his…"

"Girlfriend-how is he?" The eyes of firehouse 51 shot towards Gabby at this; but Gabby never took her attention off of the doctor.

"He suffered a major head injury, there is swelling around the brain it has gone down a significant amount between the last two scans, so we aren't too worried about that, however we will continue to watch it. Right now we have him in a medically induced coma, we want to give him plenty of time to heal accordingly. He does have a fractured skull but things could have been much worse. We're hoping to wean him off the medicine keeping him unconscious little by little over the next two days. After that it's up to him how soon he wakes up; but he was very lucky I'm expecting him to make a fully recovery. It's after visiting hours so only one of you are allowed to stay which I'm assuming would be—Gabby Dawson?"

"How did-"

"He was asking for you when we first brought him back. The rest of you can see him tomorrow."

"Thank you, doctor."

Each of them said goodbye to Gabby with a hug and a kiss on the check along with reassurance that Matt was a fighter and he would be just fine. When it was just Boden and herself left he gave her a hug before questioning her what exactly was going on between her and Casey.

"Is what I heard true? Are you two together?"

"I- I honestly don't know chief, we um…never really discussed a label, but if you're asking if we've acted on our feelings then yes."

"Good. It's about time."

He smiled before giving her a hug, "You'll call us if anything changes?"

"Of course."

When Gabby was alone, she'd met up with a nurse to walk her back into the ICU where Matt was being kept under watchful eye to ensure his recovery. The nurse was explaining all the machines and wires he was on but Gabby has tuned her out-she knew this speech she had said this speech plenty of times. She knew what to expect. That however didn't stop her breath from catching in her throat when she'd caught sight of him just outside his room. He had a white bandage wrapped around his head with wires coming from his skull reassuring her he had plenty of brain activity. He had a breathing tube, an IV, and wires coming from his chest. His cheek had been split open and his eye was swollen shut. He had stitches on the side of his head, gauze gently taped over it to keep the wound clean, and thin bandages holding the cut on his cheek closed. She knew they all meant he was strong, he could survive this but no matter how many times she had giving the speech she could never had prepared herself to see the man she was in love with laying broken in a hospital bed. She brought her hand to her mouth willing herself to keep her tears at bay, before taking a deep breath and stepping in the room, sitting by his side and grabbing his hand.

**Well what do you all think? **

**Let me know if I should Continue?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all for the incredible feedback! I was not expecting such a positive response. As for the reviewer who corrected my mistakes I appreciate it! **** Unfortunately I don't have a beta reader, and I while do reread my work I don't always catch my mistakes; so it helps to see the mistakes I am missing in my writing. Once again I do appreciate it! **

**Please take note that this chapter will have Casey in the in between of heaven and earth. This chapter is NOT meant to offend anyone, their religion or their beliefs. I am not asking you to believe any of what is spoken about in this chapter if you don't already believe it. – Because the majority of the chapter will take place with Casey in the in between I found it easier to italicize any and all conversations on earth. **** once again please read and review!**

**Disclaimer; I do not own Chicago Fire, its characters, NBC or any of the storylines from the show! I also have a quote in here from the movie P.S I love you, which I have no ownership in either! **

Casey's eyes shot open at the blaring bright light coming in past the curtains from the bedroom window. His head hurt, in fact it more than hurt, it was pounding. He immediately reached his hand over in search of Gabby, but when he was met with just sheets he sat up fully opening his eyes. He heard a giggle by the door before hearing a voice that shook him to his core.

"Who are you looking for over there?"

"Hallie? – I guess..I guess wow."

"Matt, speak English please."

"I just had a very long, very strange-"

"You haven't been dreaming Matt."

"What?"

"I'm really gone, and you're really with Gabby now."

Casey held his head in his hands, his headache getting worse as his frustration grew.

"What's going on Hallie?"

"Matt, what's the last thing you remember; before waking up here I mean."

"I don't- I don't know. We got a call, at an apartment building; there was a woman screaming for her baby, I- I – the woman's baby were they both okay? God why the hell does my head hurt so much."

"Matt it's okay, just take a deep breath, and try to remember."

"I can't remember anything. I'm so confused, and I feel like my head is going to explode I need Tylenol or something."

Casey attempted to stand but Hallie walked toward him, tugging his hand so that the two sat side by side on the bed.

"Matt, you were injured- The foundation of the building started to give in, you were hit, and you suffered a horrible head injury."

"Am- Am I dead?"

"No, that will be your choice. Come on we don't have a lot of time."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ignoring his question she walked out of the room, Casey following behind her; shocked when it wasn't his living room he'd walked into, instead a small kitchen he'd never seen before. At the table was a man holding tight to a sobbing women and baby, but it wasn't just any women and baby; he'd seen them before- when he pulled them from the burning building.

"I don't understand what's going on here, Hallie."

"You asked me if the baby and her mother made it out okay, because of you they did. If you hadn't run back inside that building there is no telling whether or not they would have made it out alive."

"Why is this happening to me? Is this supposed to be some lifetime movie where I've taken something for granted and here you are to show me all the good I have?"

"Matt this isn't to punish you. It's to help you understand some things; After Andy's death- You all put up walls, Kelly blamed you and while you guys have worked past those differences, you don't realize you still aren't as close as you can be in fear of losing another friend. I promise you it's all going to make sense- follow me."

Once again Casey followed closely behind her, out of his front door into the hospital waiting room, where the entire firehouse 51 sat waiting to see him one at a time. He followed Hallie to where Kelly and Shay sat holding one another's hands for comfort, deep in thought and conversation.

"_All this time I spent feeling angry and acting bitter toward him- now I may never get the chance to tell him I don't blame him, I never did, I blamed myself. The two of you are all I've ever really had and I've been horrible to him this past year."_

"_Kelly, you know Matt. He's a fighter; there is no way he's going down without a fight."_

"_God what if he doesn't make it through?"_

"_He will, believe that until you have reason not to. Focus on the positives, what are you going to tell him when he wakes up?"_

"_I'd like to try and be friends again, no- brothers again."_

"_That's good, what else?"_

Casey couldn't listen any longer,he was getting more and more frustrated as his headache increased and hearing everyone so upset, not being able to do anything about it just angered him even more. He walked away turning the corner and leaning against it. It was only a moment before Hallie turned the corner coming into view again.

"Are you okay Matt?"

"Before- You said It was my choice whether or not I died- what did you mean?"

"I mean exactly what I said; people don't realize what they have until they could lose it, Kelly for example would never admit to feeling ashamed of the way he treated you, his pride and ego would always stop him. But this- your life in the balance, he has only just come to realize how much he misses the bond the two of you shared. At the end of all of this, you have to make a choice to go back, allowing those people to change; or you can choose to crossover into Heaven."

"What if- what if I already know what I want to do? What if I already know I don't want to wake up from this?"

"Hold that thought and follow me."

"This walking away from me is getting old real- what are we doing here? Where are we?"

"We are in Heather's new apartment. She just heard the news, chief Boden called her. He thinks it might do you some good to hear the boy's voices. Give you someone or something to fight for, of course when Heather heard what had happened she didn't even have to think twice about it. The only problem now is having to tell the boys."

"_Ben, Griffin come here, mommy needs to have a very grown up conversation with you both."_

"_Come on Ben- What's wrong mom?"_

"_Honey, I just spoke with chief Boden, honey Matt was hurt-"_

"_Is he going to be okay mommy?"_

"_Of course he is Ben, he promised us he wouldn't leave us remember? He wouldn't break that promise to us."_

"_Baby sometimes people don't mean to break promises but-"_

"_No! NO! HE PROMISED HE WOULDN'T LEAVE US!" _

"_Baby look at me, right now he is still fighting to stay here okay? But we should go down there, it might do him good to hear you voices; so we have to pack tonight okay mommy already booked your plane tickets for tomorrow morning."_

"_Are you coming with us mommy?" _

"_I don't know if I can come out right way Ben. Remember I told you mommy has to check with the policemen if I want to go out of state? I'm going to try and come as soon as possible though baby okay? I'm going to put you on the plane and uncle Kelly is going to meet you at the airport in Chicago though okay? You two are going to stay with him until I can get down there."_

"_He's going to be okay isn't he mommy?"_

"_I hope so baby, I hope so."_

"What is this? What are you trying to do to me- What if I don't want to pull through this? Are you just planning on guilt tripping me the entire time?"

"Matt, you just need to understand that if you choose to leave, everything you will be leaving behind."

"What if I don't want to keep fighting; my head hurt's and I am getting tired. I can barely keep my eyes open; I just want to go to sleep and be done fighting."

Hallie took the two steps to Matt gently gripping placing her hands on Matt's face.

"Don't you see Matt; it's not your time. All the people who would miss out on your skills as a firefighter, Gabby, the boys, do you really want to leave all that behind?"

"Gabby- How's she holding up?"

"See for yourself." Hallie nudged her head toward the front door urging Matt to walk through; he did what he was told and found himself staring at a scene that shattered his heart into a million and one pieces. A second stretcher had been pushed up against his, both railings down so both beds looked to be one. On one side, his body lay there bruised and broken, on the other side lay Gabby. Eye's red and puffy, but somehow still managing to form tears. She lay on her side facing him holding his hand between her two perfectly petite palms, bringing his hand up to place a soft, gentle kiss on his knuckles before bringing it back down.

"_I've known you for six years now and this has officially been the most amount of time I've gone without hearing that amazing voice of yours. The doctor said you should have woken up by now, I know that all the medical books would say that as more time passes, it only decreases your chances of making a full recovery. It's been nearly two weeks since I last saw those beautiful blue eyes of yours. They took your breathing tube out over a week ago but I still haven't seen that contagious smile of yours. I know I'm being selfish but I won't tell you it's okay to stop fighting. I just got you Matt, I am not losing you.."_

"You haven't lost me Gabby…"

"You know you could always go back and tell her that. You can make your decision and easily end all this worry for her."

"I think you're right Hallie, I think it's time for me to go back. I-I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry Matt don't you see why it was me who had to take you through this? It's okay to be happy. You were my life, but I am just one chapter in yours. Don't be afraid to love her, to let her love you."

"I was worried you would think I forgot about you…"

"Never- It's time now Matt. I love you, let yourself love, and let yourself be happy. You can wake up now." Hallie brought her hand to his face placing a gentle kiss on his cheek before looking back at Gabby.

"…_The doctor said even if you woke up you may have some sort of memory damage; but I don't care okay? I don't care if you forget we were ever a couple and all I ever get to be is your friend. Just please come back to me…"_

"_I could never forget us-__"_

_Gabby felt her heart flutter at the sound of his voice, looking up with tears in her eyes._

"_You're too beautiful; I spent way to long apart from you to forget that I finally made you mine."_

"_I should get the doctor."_

_Matt brought her lips down to land on his; "Just-wait a couple minds okay? I just want us to have a few minutes alone okay?"_

"_Okay."_

**Well there you have it chapter two **

**My sister and I were having a bit of a debate, she thought Casey got hit in the stomach and coughed up blood- I thought he got hit in the head. Guess we will find out for sure in a few days but I'm thinking if he gets hit in the head there's no way they are going to kill him off. If you give it some thought what writers would kill Hallie off from a head injury, then just months later kill Matt off, the man who just happened to be her fiancé the same exact way…a blow to the head? Seems a bit sketchy to me. What are you opinions!?**


	3. Chapter 3

**IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY SEEN "NOT LIKE THIS" SKIP THE A/N THERE WILL BE A SPOILER ALERT. **

**I feel so bad for not updating in over a week; I've been super busy—I hadn't even watched the last episode until about an hour ago which my gosh the feels. My heart broke that Gabby and Matt were fighting before the call. I can't imagine the amount of fear and pain Gabby must ALREADY be feeling, but the fact that they were fighting makes it worse. Hermann must feel like such an ass, and Shay kind of pissed me off too, I get she was happy for Gabby but if my best friend put me on the spot I'd be pretty pissed off. Can I just say how freaking adorable Nathan sitting outside with a petition to save 51?! I have ADORED CJ Adams since I saw him in The Odd Life of Timothy Green and if possible the kid only got cuter; speaking of cuteness Mouch just literally has me smiling ALL the time! He reminds me of my dad and I just think he is the cutest thing ever! haha! When the chief started yelling to help Casey, and they all ran in and when Severide got in the ambulance with them, the look on his face.. .god. and everyone just watched the ambulance like they couldn't believe Casey was hurt. Oh Gosh. Ugh and Clark being arrested breaks my heart. I seriously think it was his wife that shot him. I'm SURE Casey doesn't die, from the start it was a bit sketchy to think he would die but you never know. It does suck we have to wait until January to find out what the outcome of it all may be- I can't help but think there has to be something BIG that comes from this, even if it's temporary damage. This episode was incredible; seriously one of the best this season's aired along with "Joyride". But sorry for my rant…enjoy **

**I love you all for the support and reviews of this! Means the world! I apologize for the shortness of this update. Takes a few chapters to get into the swing of things for me; please be patient with me! **

**Disclaimer; I own nothing…I wish I did but nope nada**.

"Matt- I should call the doctor now…"

"Yeah—okay…" Gabby stood up to exit the room but not before Matt reached for her hand pulling her back toward him and giving her a gentle kiss on the lips.

"What-?"

"I just wanted another kiss, it's been too long." Gabby smiled at him, tears of joy welling in her eyes before walking out to find a doctor.

"Gabby—what's going on, you're crying is Matt okay?" Gabby turned toward the voice to see the waiting room filled with all of 51, just like it had been the night Matt was rushed in.

"Hey guys, I didn't realize you were here-"

"It was slow so we all wanted to try and visit Casey before a call came in."

"Well you picked a good time; I was just looking for a doctor…Casey just woke up."

Shouts of excitement came from the waiting room, some of 51 looking up thanking God—Kelly Severide falling to his knees crying. Shay bent down to rub his back in attempts to sooth him-

"Hey he's okay; it's going to be okay now."

"Thank God." Severide looked up to Gabby before speaking again. "How's he feeling?"

"Good considering—Listen Kelly why don't you come with me to find a doctor; you can see how he's doing yourself?"

"Yeah – Okay"

Casey looked toward the door as he heard it open, watching as the doctor, Gabby and Kelly shuffled in one right behind the other. Noticing his friends eyes, he could tell he'd been crying quite a bit these last two weeks.

"Mr. Casey- How are you feeling?"

"Matt—Please. All things considered I feel pretty good." The room remained quiet as the doctor listened to Casey's heartbeat, then checked his eyes for proper dilation and finally as he reviewed the numbers on the monitor he spoke again.

"Well Matt, you seem to be doing incredible, are you having any pain?"

"My back hurts a bit actually is that normal?"

"Yes, no worries there, the impact of the beam caused some major bruising and similar to when you have a pinched nerve and it can shoot pain throughout that particular part of your body, this is a very similar situation. It should start to dull, and eventually disappear as you heal. I'll have a nurse bring in something for the pain."

"Nothing that's going to knock me out—I've been asleep long enough."

The doctor smiled at him before responding; "No problem. I'm going to schedule a CT just to make sure the swelling has gone down completely; and I'm still going to keep you at least for a few days for observation. It's good to see you awake, Matt." With that the doctor had left the room.

Gabby looked toward Kelly who had his head down, but she could still she the tears making their way down his cheeks. "I'm going to go update everyone; would you stay with Matt for me Kelly?"

"Yeah, yeah of course" Kelly looked up at Gabby before mouthing a silent 'thank you'.

"So um—Now that your girl is gone how are you really feeling?"

Matt chuckled before looking at him; my back is killing me, beyond words—but if I admit to that I know Gabby will convince me to take something stronger then ibuprofen and I don't want to sleep anymore."

"I hear you man."

"So- you called Gabby my girl…does that mean all of 51 knows?"

"Oh uh yeah- they would only let family know your condition- so Gabby had to tell them. But I kind of think everyone had it figured out anyway, she was pretty scared- she barely kept her composure outside of the ambulance and broke down once the doors were shut, she hasn't been able to stop crying since."

"Ah—I see. Just as well anyway, I was tired of keeping her a secret when all I wanted to do was yell it from the rooftop."

"I'm really happy for you man, and if I may say so myself it's about damn time."

Casey chuckled shaking his head, before looking back up at Kelly. "Hey Kelly- I know this is going to sound crazy—but um..when I was out of it I could see things like I was outside of my body."

"Like Heaven?"

"No, I don't know how to explain it without sound crazy I just—I want to be brothers again too."

Severide looked up to him, tears in his eyes.

"You- You heard that?"

"Like I said I can't really explain it—but yeah..I know you were dealing with losing Andy too. I don't blame you. The past is the past."

Kelly took the few steps to Casey's bed before hugging him. "I missed you man. Don't you ever do that again."

"Thanks, brother."

Later that night; Gabby laid curled up into Casey's side, both were awake in a comfortable silence.

"Matt…I've been thinking a lot about it and I think maybe I'm okay with being a paramedic."

"No…I mean, if that's what you want it's okay with me. But I was wrong not to support you. I tried to persuade you not to—it was for the wrong reasons. I just, I don't ever want to lose you but it's not fair for me to want your support and not give you my support in return. So I want you to make your decision for you—not because Hermann is against it, or I'm worried. Stay a paramedic for you, or become a firefighter for you—but whatever you decide do it for you. I'll support you the whole way."

"How did I get so lucky? I don't know what I did to deserve you but I'm so glad I did it."

"That's funny I think the same thing all the time."

"Matt, I know we haven't really been a couple long, and granted you were here for the greater portion—"

"I love you, Gabby."

Gabby turned her head to look into his eyes, tears filled each of his eyes as well as hers.

"I love you too, Matt."

Matt moved his lips down to meet hers they stood still for a few moments before pulling back. Gabby bit her lip before smiling at him. "Get some sleep."

**Those of you who have reviewed thank you soo much! As a writer it is so important to hear feedback whether it be constructive or ideas or your opinions. Anyone who might have shared their works know how discouraging it could be when you see people reading and following a story but they aren't actually reviewing, I don't want to beg or seem like I'm unappreciative of reviews I've already gotten but it really does boost a writers confidence when they see feedback. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Xoxo **


	4. Chapter 4

**I told myself I would have this update posted before Christmas. But in the mist of writing the update we had a family emergency come up so I had to babysit my baby cousins. My family unfortunately has received some pretty awful news and I just want to say when I first decided to write this story, I wanted to update at least every other night. But I guess life doesn't always follow your plans. For the time being things are pretty hectic; updates will not be as frequently as I had originally planned for this story, but as things start to settle down they will be more frequent. I'm going to be honest I was all about to post an A/N saying I would not be continuing. However I am a major Bruce Springsteen fan, and in the mist of writing the A/N I had music playing, and Blood Brothers came on. Maybe it was just a coincidence but I'd like to take it as a sign. Since last year hearing the song play at the end of the pilot while flipping through channels is what caused me to stop and watch it; ultimately being the reason for me discovering Chicago Fire. I just want to be honest with all the loyal readers and followers of this story. Please keep my family in your thoughts and prayers. I hope you enjoy this update. **

**A/N I own nothing. **

It was nearly three in the morning when Kelly and Shay came walking into Matt's hospital room. Shay put her hand out motioning for Gabby to come toward her before speaking.

"I'm going to take you home for the night- take a shower, get some shuteye and you can come back in the morning and maybe sneak some real food in for you and Matt."

"No, I appreciate it Shay but I'm not going anywhere."

"Gabby, she's right you should get some sleep baby."

"No, Casey I am not leaving your si-" Before she was able to finish Kelly spoke up.

"I'm going to be with him the entire night; I even brought some ideas I have for fixing up the apartment. You now since he's going to be faking an injury I figured I'd put his construction skills to use." They all shared a laugh at Kelly's joke, before Gabby spoke again.

"I don't know…" Matt reached for her hand to pull her close to him, before planting a kiss on her lips.

"Go get some rest, get a shower in and put some of the sexy vanilla lotion on before you come back. I will be fine I promise."

"Baby—"

"Gabby I promise I will call you if his condition changes the slightest." Knowing she was fighting a losing battle, Gabby finally gave in; thanking Kelly and giving him a hug goodbye, then giving Matt a kiss goodbye, before walking out with Shay.

"So tell me something man, how serious are you and Gabby? I mean it's clear you two are in love with one another but are you taking it slow or what?"

"I really don't know man. I mean all of this happened so fast, it was definitely not slow." Both men chuckled before Matt continued. "I think—I mean we haven't exactly talked about it. I think we both realized things were changing with us; she was there for me the entire time with the boys and I just—I don't know. I mean I know I love her, I know she loves me… but I don't know where we go from there. It's been years in the making and I know we need to have some kind of conversation about it, but you know Gabby and I have never really been ready to pursue this at the same time. Now that it's finally happening I think we're both terrified talking about it will ruin it."

"Yeah but it's Gabby man; what could possibly ruin it? You guys want the same things right?"

"Yeah—I mean…I don't… I don't know. Wow."

"What is it?"

"I guess I just assumed Gabby wanted kids. She's so great with kids; but I never actually heard her say out loud that she wanted kids. You know Hallie and I never worked out because having kids was something I was never willing to give up."

"I think you need to talk to Gabby man."

"Yeah—maybe you're right."

"Gabs- You know I love you right, but you are completely defeating the purpose of getting some rest. Put your phone down, the volume is up you will not miss a call if something happens."

"You're right I'm sorry."

"Talk to me Gabby- You have been through a lot the last couple weeks; what's running through your head right now?"

"I don't know I just I know it is way too fast but I am so in love with him; what if something like this happens again?"

"Well, then he'll get better like he did this time."

"I want us to move in together."

"Gabby that's great; have you talked to him about this."

"No, I just- what if it's too fast for him?"

"Bitch. Please. You know damn well you two have been undressing one another with your eyes for years now. If you both can't see how made for each other you are then you need to have your eyes checked."

"I'm so afraid I'm going to lose him, I don't have the best records with guys… I screwed things up with him in the past; I've ruined things with Peter, Jay."

"None of them were Casey. You cannot seriously be comparing the situations. They are nothing alike."

"Yeah, you're right."

"So whatever happened to you and Shay having a kid together?"

"I don't know, Renee came back pregnant and we thought the baby was mine, it caused some friction and we never really talked much about it after that."

"So it looks like maybe I'm not the only one who needs to be having an important conversation."

"No man, I guess you're right." Matt chuckled before stopping short when he saw a few dark red drops fall onto his hand.

"Hey. Kelly."

"Yeah?"

"Call the doctor—"

"You okay man?" looking up just then to see blood pouring from Casey's nose.

"My nos-" Before he could finish, Casey's head fell back against the pillow, alarms started to sound and his body began to rack violently.

"Dawson-Gabby come on you need to get up; we have to go to the hospital."

"What happened?"

Gabby looked at Shay's tear filled eyes and her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach.

"Kelly doesn't know anything—he was kicked out of the room, he flat lined, baby."

**Let me know what you all think. Review please. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank You all for the thoughts and prayers for my family; they are appreciated more than you know. I would just like to point out that I am not a medical expert, I have done a little bit of reach and I have personal and volunteer experience with the blood thinning medicine mentioned in this chapter for reasons unrelated to head trauma. If there are mistakes I apologize. **

**Disclaimer, I own absolutely nothing. **

Gabby couldn't remember much about the car ride. She was overwhelmed with an immense amount of guilt for leaving and worry that she had wasted what may have been the final moments with him. The ten minute drive to the hospital felt like it had taken hours; when they had finally arrived, Shay had barely had time to park the car before Gabby was unbuckled and running toward the entrance. Immediately spotting Kelly in the waiting room she ran into his waiting arms. Both of the two stood for what seemed like hours just embracing one another, while they both cried and silently prayed for good news. It wasn't long before they felt Shay join their hug.

"Kelly, what happened?"

"I don't know, I mean we were just sitting there talking and his nose started bleeding, next thing I know I was being rushed out of the room. God, Gabby-I- I'm so sorry."

"Stop- none of this is anyone's fault, I chose to go home. Besides if we start apologizing it means we're already thinking the worst and We need to send out positive thoughts right now."

"Okay."

"Did you call the others?"

"Not yet, I just didn't know if you'd want to be alone."

"Thanks Kelly-" Before Gabby could finish her thought a older man had entered the room.

"Family for Matthew Casey"

"That's us, how is he?"

"Because of the emergency surgery and the recovery time; we wanted to prevent clots from forming. So was placed on Coumadin which is a blood thinner, but because he hasn't been awake and he hasn't had much of an appetite leading to a bit of weight loss his blood was a little thinner than we wanted. But we immediately administered a beta blocker and platelets which helped to reverse the effects of the coumadin and to restart his heart. He is doing fine and he's asking for Kelly and Gabby. You can all go see him whenever you'd like he is back in his room."

"Thank God."

Walking into the room they were surprised to see Matt looking as well as he was, the only indicator of what had just happened was the bag of platelets running through the IV in his arm to ensure he wouldn't have any other problems. Gabby was the first of the three to walk into the room; running to his bedside and throwing her arms around him; crying into the crook of his neck.

"Oh- Baby hey I'm okay." Matt's words did nothing to comfort Gabby who was still clinging tight to him, her sniffles heard throughout the room and her tears could be felt on his neck. Matt reached back to grab her hands pushing her far enough forward that he could gently hold her face in his palms and look her in the eye.

"I told you Gabby, it's our time now. Okay baby? You aren't going to get rid of me that easily. We have waited for this for far too long." With that Matt brought his lips to hers and kissed her with as much passion as the night of their first kiss.

"I love you, baby."

"I love you too, Matt."

It was then that Matt noticed Shay and Kelly standing in silence by the door; allowing them to have their moment. He looked Kelly in the eye, before motioning him to come over. He did so, embracing his friend.

"I'm sorry about that man; I know you probably didn't have that kind of scare planned for your night off."

"You are the only person, who could by no fault of his own scare the hell out of us all; and still apologize for it. We're just all glad you're okay."

"Thanks Man. Thank you Leslie; for getting her out of the hospital." Matt then took Shay into a hug.

"Of course, though I have a feeling she's going to be glued to your side from here until the end of your recovery."

"Damn straight!"

The group of friends sat around talking until their conversation was interrupted by Kelly's phone going off. Looking at the caller ID he stepped aside to take the call.

"Antonio, what do you know?"

"What's that about?"

"Um, Clarke… he's suspect in a murder."

"That's ridiculous! I mean it's Clarke!"

"I know baby, we all know but it doesn't look very good. He made threats during an argument- nothing he meant but the bullets found came from a gun Clarke has—Antonio is trying his best to prove that Clarke is innocent." Gabby finished her thought as Kelly returned to the group.

"Um; they just picked up Clarke's wife—they found her prints on the murder weapon. I have to get down to the station. Would you mind giving me a ride, Shay?"

"Yeah, of course"

"We'll be back tomorrow."

"Thanks you guys."

It wasn't more than a half an hour after Shay and Kelly had headed out; Against Gabby's protest, fearing she'd hurt him Matt her dragged her to lay beside him on his bed; her head resting on his chest, listening to his heart beat while he ran his hand through her hair.

"Penny for your thoughts," Matt chuckled had Gabby's attempt to break the silence.

"Promise you won't think I'm crazy?" Gabby tilted her head to find Matt looking down at her, their eyes meeting.

"I could never think that; tell me what's bothering you."

"I just—I love you so much. I don't know how I lived so long just being your friend."

"Matt I love you too."

"You know when I first came back to 51 after being gone for two months, and we had gone for breakfast- you told me you were happy just being in my life as a friend, you remember that?"

"Remember it? I had to force myself to say it—I just didn't want to lose you, if you weren't ready to be in a relationship I didn't want to push you; and I didn't want things to be weird for us."

"I wanted so badly to wrap you up in my arms and kiss you that day. But I felt so wrong, I had only lost Hallie a few months before and I didn't think it was fair to her—or to you. I just wanted the time to be right. But I started taking care of the boys, then you were dating again, I just kept thinking I didn't deserve you. Someone knew I didn't deserve you and that's why the timing was never right—"

"Matt, you have—"

"I just have to finish this before I lose the courage."

"Okay."

"Then when we finally were together, god I haven't been this happy in so long; but there was this immense amount of guilt eating away at me. I thought maybe I was moving on from Hallie too fast; I think what killed me the most was the fear I felt when you told me about becoming a firefighter. I knew if I lost you I could never move on, if I lost you—I'd lose myself too; the amount of guilt that came with that revelation was unimaginable, because how could I mourn Hallie and move on but not survive without you? I felt guilty, like I was being a bad person for being happy again. But then I saw Hallie, and I know this sounds crazy, but when I was unconscious I saw her and I saw things outside of my body. I saw Severide and you, I saw the boys; she let me see how everyone would be affected if I had chosen not to fight and suddenly I didn't want to give up. I think for a moment I did; and I think that feeling came from the guilt I had been feeling, but Hallie- she told me she wanted me to be happy. She told me not to give up; that it was okay to love you and to let you love me. She told me…she said that I was her life, but she was just one chapter in mine and I think I realized in that moment what she was trying to show me the entire time was that you were more than a chapter- you were my life. All I wanted to do was come back to you; tell you how much I loved you…"

Matt could tell Gabby had been crying at this point in his conversation but he couldn't bring himself to stop talking; because if he had he wouldn't have the courage to start it up again.

"You're my life Gabby; I realized all the time spent as friends, all the missed opportunities…they were all because I was meant to learn how much you mean to me, how much I need you in my life and how much I will always need you… and I guess I just hope you feel the same about me as I do about you."

Gabby brought her face up to look Matt in the eye before bringing him into a kiss. "I will always need you, Matt. This experience almost losing you, it's caused me to think a lot about our future and I never said anything because I didn't want to freak you out. I know this is all knew and this is in the future I'm talking about but I…I can't help but to picture out future together. A golden retriever with the big house, and…and kids…" Gabby paused to watch his reaction, but Matt kept a pretty good poker face on so she continued. "…a little boy with your eyes and smile, the one that could get him out of any trouble he was in."

A single breath was all it took for Gabby to notice the corner of matt's lips twitching before breaking out into a full blown grin; she swore she could feel her heart smile as he spoke "A daughter, with your beautiful brown eyes, and your long brown hair; and your attitude—I would never have to worry about her, if she had your attitude."

Gabby smiled at his vision before bring the tip of her finger to trace the outline of his lip, "You know you will always worry about her, because she would be your little girl, attitude or not. It's who you are Matt- when you love, you give it your everything. That's why I fell in love with you."

Matt brought his lips to hers for a quick kiss; "Get some sleep baby, I love you."

"I love you too, Matt."

Gabby rested her head on his chest; listening to and feeling the steady beats of his heart; comforting her into a slumber, not long before Matt had drifted off with her.

**I am very proud to say after getting season one for Christmas I have gotten my brother addicted. We are half way through season one and are going to attempt to get up early and watch all rest of season 1 and catch him up on season two before the new episode… fingers crossed! Fluffy Chapter; please read and review! Always looking to improve my writing so constructive criticism is welcomed. **


End file.
